As a developer I hate it too. However, I understand why the situation is like it is.
Writing software is a lot like creating art. That's one reason why I love it so much. I love creating stuff from nothing. That is the problem though.
How many artists do you know that just like to copy other people's work? I don't know many. The joy is in the creation, not blindly copying what someone else created. People can influence eath other but it's not often that we like to just outright copy someone else. That's why programmers don't like to work on other people's projects. Everyone has their own style. It's too personal. We do it sometimes but there will always be that underlying desire to do your own thing.
This is where commercial companies have a huge advantage. By controlling other people you have one vision but many workers. The workers work either because either they are getting something out of the deal or are otherwise physically being forced to do what some leader says.
There are also smartcards that let you enter the PIN directly on the card itself. Everything is internal, the CPU on the card does all the work. All it needs is a power source.
If you fly RC planes then you will realize that even a 13in plane is pretty small. That is, if you want to actually be able to control it.
The smaller the plane, the harder it is to control. They already have planes way smaller than that and also helicopters but good luck using them outside because even a slight breeze will make them damn near impossible to control.
The only solution to the problem I can see is if we embed a microcontroller or something that can quickly compensate for the wind like insects and birds can. That will require a much more maneuverable craft though, something that can move with the flexibility of an insect or bird. A straight wing craft can't do that.
vpinball has a pretty good physics model. Coupled with VpinMAME and you get something close to the real machine.
However, last I heard vpinball is no longer being developed and is a closed-source Windows-only application. Ah well...
I occasionally fire it up on my home-built arcade machine that has pinball flipper buttons on the sides of the machine.
Nothing beats the real thing though. There is just so much "stuff" in a pinball machine. The real ones are much easier to see what's going on. A 2D pinball game can't replicated the complexity of the real machines and a 3D model is difficult to see.
I have been using Subversion on large projects for a long time. Even before Subversion was really viable. At this point it works at least as good as CVS. It has a lot of nice extras compared to CVS but is very similar. I still choose to use it over CVS.
Now, my problem with CVS and Subversion is security. There is none other than what you can do at the OS level. In fact, Subversion is worse than CVS in some respects because you can't limit access within specific areas of the source tree.
So I think Subversion works good but I don't necessarily think it is the best answer. I would really love to see a comparison of CVS vs. Subversion vs. GNU Arch vs. Monotone vs.... Monotone looks interesting but seems taylored more towards open-source/bizarre development rather than business/commercial use.
Now you are stuck. You need to replace what they gave you. Oh, it'll cost you: manpower, lost opportunities, potentially a pile of pesos...
How is this different from anything else in business? It's not just software. Say I make Dongleflubs and I based my design on some integrated circuit made by IC-masters. Now say IC-masters goes out of business or decides to stop selling me the chips I need. Now, I really need this chip because it provides a critical piece of functionality in a Dongleflub. What do I do? I have to adapt and come up with something else, that's what. I have to either make my own chips, find another resource, or go out of business.
That's just the way things work in a captilistic society. That's how people make money. I don't see why software should be any different.
Don't get me wrong, I love free software I have have created tons of free open-sourced software over the years. However, I did it because I like writing software (ie. I wrote it just for the challenge) and/or I wanted to give back for all the nice free software other people have done (ie. I like helping others).
I do make my living by writing software and that stuff is not always open-source (sometimes it is though), and for good reason.
I would recommend going to school. As others have mentioned, you need to keep the momentum up. I personally found college a lot more relaxing than grade school.
If you're not sure what you want to take, just take the courses you have to take for any degree. You know, the electives, liberal arts, and "social" stuff that you have to take no matter what.
The truth is, it doesn't really matter what your degree is in. Most job places just want to know what your experience is and if you're any good. Your degree is just a checkmark on their list and it often doesn't matter what it is in.
There is nothing saying you need to take a full load. Maybe take half a load and then work more on the side (internships are awesome for getting experience if you can find something that interests you).
Re:It's as if icons peaked 2-4 years ago
on
A History of Icons
·
· Score: 1
I've done a lot of research on this particular subject (icons vs. text) and this is what I found:
- Icons/graphics are best for saving screen space.
- Text is best for beginners and rarely used functions. Most of the time plain text is more appropriate than a picture. This is true even when working across language barriers. Ever hear the expression "A picture says a thousand words"? Yeah, that is not what you want.
So, to make a proper application you should default to text and then allow the user to switch whichever buttons they choose to graphical representations as they become more experienced (hello GNOME developers?! with your "Computer" and "Applications" menus that I can't put on the side of the screen).
Also, even text buttons should have "tool tips" or they should update a status bar with a longer explaination of the button's function.
What is stupid is that I've worked in several government buildings that only had one washroom per floor or sometimes even less. I don't think they did this for creative or communication reasons, but let me tell you, it didn't help with communication or anything like that.
There are larger problems to tackle in an organisation than how many bathrooms there are. Good leadership makes the most difference. Working conditions come way later.
I once worked in a freezing cold building with paper thin walls while using a card table as a desk. We were much more successful than some of the multi-billion dollar projects I have worked on that had what I call "invisible managers" running the show. I won't go into detail on why I call them that (it does not mean they are not involved in the project), but proper management makes all the difference in the world.
Anyone who has been around would realize that it's already been tried and done a gazzilion times in the past. Hell, thin-clients are one of the oldest desktop system designs ever made (mini/mainframe 3270, anyone?!).
Like so many things in this world the true solution will likely be a compromise. That is, we will still have high-powered desktops but run some stuff over the net (like you do now with web-based e-mail and such). Balance, moderation, compromise: keys to everything in life.
I mean this seriously. I'm both an experienced O'Caml (and SML, Erlang) programmer and C/C++ programmer. I have never, ever, had anyone present a problem that can't be done faster in C or C++. You might have to solve the problem differently, but C/C++ wins every time as far as performance goes.
Now implementation speed and/or maintenance is something different. O'Caml has a horrible syntax though. Regular SML is much better. They should've just stuck with that.
Yeah, me too. They are the quietest 3.5" drives out there. There are quieter 2.5" drives, but they lack space and performance.
What I hate about all drives, even the Seagate's, is they every few minutes they go into some self check mode or something. I have no idea what the drive is doing, but it gets louder. This is not disk access, it's like when the drive has been mostly idle for several minutes it starts doing something (internal checks or something?). It's annoyingly loud though.
But I guess the main point is that asking "Is Xen more secure than VServer than UML" is like asking "Which taste better - apples or oranges?" (i.e. what's your definition of taste?).
No way. That's a cop-out.
I think the question at hand is whether or not a compromise in one of the guest VM's will compromise the entire machine.
And yes, there are better designs than others for preventing this. If someone roots one of the guest machines, I don't want it to compromise anything other than that one VM.
How does the security in VServer fair against Xen?
I did a little research on this a long time ago and I looked at both VServer and UML, but neither seemed like they would be secure against a root level breach in one of the VM's (therefore compromising all the other VM's). I just did a quick look though, so maybe I was wrong.
I have not looked at Xen. I did not know it existed until today.
I have been using VMware and although it runs Windows great, running Linux in VMware doesn't seem to run as fast.
I have used this style extensively in the past and I agree.
I don't tend to use that format though because it's so rare that people crap their pants when they see it and start complaining. It takes a little getting used to but once you get used to it, it works a lot better.
These days I use whatever style the project is written in but I much prefer your style or ANSI style. I usually just use ANSI style so that other programmers will at least accept it.
I have to say that I agree with you to a certain degree.
I'll go one more step though. It's about white space. You can almost always recognize a good programmer by how clean the code looks because of proper use of white space. If the code is all crammed together and cluttered looking then you know that programmer sucks. White space does not make your code slower guys!
Note that I said this is a way to recognize a good programmers. Often experience plays a role but I see a ton of fairly experienced programmers that write ass crappy code.
I see a lot of people saying comments are also a sign but I have to disagree. Well written code is easy to read and figure out. I would much rather have nicely written code than comments. (Note that it is my job to fix other people's code so I have a lot of experience with this)
It's not exactly the same. It's version 5.1 build 2600. A build number is a lot different than an actual version number.
Personally I think many projects (especially open-source) are getting out of hand with the version numbers. Just look at some of the version information on some Debian packages.
I mean, you have stuff like version "testing-4.3.0.dfsg.1-12.0.1". Does no one else see that as insane? I know each part has a purpose, but it seems more like improper project management. Is this possibly caused by a lack of proper scheduling? Things take too long and people start branching off into separate sub-versions.
It's the same thing with the kernel. I see no reason for official kernels to have so many frickin sub-versions. KISS, please. I think you reach a certain point and then the versions have lost all meaning. End-users can't keep track of all this stuff. Please implement better project management practices and just do actual releases with a simple versioning scheme.
Oh my, what a load of crap. While it's true that Intel probably puts out more heat, those features like TM2 and SpeedStep are good things.
OK, read this well... Regarding TM2. The Pentium has had hardware thermal protection built right into the the CPU since the at least the P3 days. Go take a look at that old Tom's Hardware article where they pull the heatsink off various CPU's while they are running Quake3. All the AMD's smoke themselves and often the motherboard too, while the Intel chips just slow the game down. This is implemented in the CPU, and it's good thing. The only AMD chips to have this feature are the Opterons.
AMD also has mechanisms like Enhanced SpeedStep. They call it Cool 'N Quiet or something like that. With the AMD's this in implemented on the motherboard. I'm not sure about these new Intel chips. This is also a good thing because it allows you to lower your fan speeds and things like that when the CPU is not running full blast. This makes for a more quiet machine which is also a good thing.
Slashdot Mirror
As a developer I hate it too. However, I understand why the situation is like it is.
Writing software is a lot like creating art. That's one reason why I love it so much. I love creating stuff from nothing. That is the problem though.
How many artists do you know that just like to copy other people's work? I don't know many. The joy is in the creation, not blindly copying what someone else created. People can influence eath other but it's not often that we like to just outright copy someone else. That's why programmers don't like to work on other people's projects. Everyone has their own style. It's too personal. We do it sometimes but there will always be that underlying desire to do your own thing.
This is where commercial companies have a huge advantage. By controlling other people you have one vision but many workers. The workers work either because either they are getting something out of the deal or are otherwise physically being forced to do what some leader says.
There are also smartcards that let you enter the PIN directly on the card itself. Everything is internal, the CPU on the card does all the work. All it needs is a power source.
That's not the worst of it. Just think of all the obsticles at house?!
If you fly RC planes then you will realize that even a 13in plane is pretty small. That is, if you want to actually be able to control it.
The smaller the plane, the harder it is to control. They already have planes way smaller than that and also helicopters but good luck using them outside because even a slight breeze will make them damn near impossible to control.
The only solution to the problem I can see is if we embed a microcontroller or something that can quickly compensate for the wind like insects and birds can. That will require a much more maneuverable craft though, something that can move with the flexibility of an insect or bird. A straight wing craft can't do that.
vpinball has a pretty good physics model. Coupled with VpinMAME and you get something close to the real machine.
However, last I heard vpinball is no longer being developed and is a closed-source Windows-only application. Ah well...
I occasionally fire it up on my home-built arcade machine that has pinball flipper buttons on the sides of the machine.
Nothing beats the real thing though. There is just so much "stuff" in a pinball machine. The real ones are much easier to see what's going on. A 2D pinball game can't replicated the complexity of the real machines and a 3D model is difficult to see.
I'm an SSH kind of guy, I don't do DAV.
I just read on the PuTTY page about some module that lets you do it with SSH (or something). It didn't sound all that great though.
I have been using Subversion on large projects for a long time. Even before Subversion was really viable. At this point it works at least as good as CVS. It has a lot of nice extras compared to CVS but is very similar. I still choose to use it over CVS.
... Monotone looks interesting but seems taylored more towards open-source/bizarre development rather than business/commercial use.
Now, my problem with CVS and Subversion is security. There is none other than what you can do at the OS level. In fact, Subversion is worse than CVS in some respects because you can't limit access within specific areas of the source tree.
So I think Subversion works good but I don't necessarily think it is the best answer. I would really love to see a comparison of CVS vs. Subversion vs. GNU Arch vs. Monotone vs.
Now you are stuck. You need to replace what they gave you. Oh, it'll cost you: manpower, lost opportunities, potentially a pile of pesos...
How is this different from anything else in business? It's not just software. Say I make Dongleflubs and I based my design on some integrated circuit made by IC-masters. Now say IC-masters goes out of business or decides to stop selling me the chips I need. Now, I really need this chip because it provides a critical piece of functionality in a Dongleflub. What do I do? I have to adapt and come up with something else, that's what. I have to either make my own chips, find another resource, or go out of business.
That's just the way things work in a captilistic society. That's how people make money. I don't see why software should be any different.
Don't get me wrong, I love free software I have have created tons of free open-sourced software over the years. However, I did it because I like writing software (ie. I wrote it just for the challenge) and/or I wanted to give back for all the nice free software other people have done (ie. I like helping others).
I do make my living by writing software and that stuff is not always open-source (sometimes it is though), and for good reason.
but only if that $100 is in the form of a Tricky Dick Fun Bill.
I would recommend going to school. As others have mentioned, you need to keep the momentum up. I personally found college a lot more relaxing than grade school.
If you're not sure what you want to take, just take the courses you have to take for any degree. You know, the electives, liberal arts, and "social" stuff that you have to take no matter what.
The truth is, it doesn't really matter what your degree is in. Most job places just want to know what your experience is and if you're any good. Your degree is just a checkmark on their list and it often doesn't matter what it is in.
There is nothing saying you need to take a full load. Maybe take half a load and then work more on the side (internships are awesome for getting experience if you can find something that interests you).
What kind of tiny laptop is that in the video?
Can you get them with nVidia cards?
I've done a lot of research on this particular subject (icons vs. text) and this is what I found:
- Icons/graphics are best for saving screen space.
- Text is best for beginners and rarely used functions. Most of the time plain text is more appropriate than a picture. This is true even when working across language barriers. Ever hear the expression "A picture says a thousand words"? Yeah, that is not what you want.
So, to make a proper application you should default to text and then allow the user to switch whichever buttons they choose to graphical representations as they become more experienced (hello GNOME developers?! with your "Computer" and "Applications" menus that I can't put on the side of the screen).
Also, even text buttons should have "tool tips" or they should update a status bar with a longer explaination of the button's function.
What is stupid is that I've worked in several government buildings that only had one washroom per floor or sometimes even less. I don't think they did this for creative or communication reasons, but let me tell you, it didn't help with communication or anything like that.
There are larger problems to tackle in an organisation than how many bathrooms there are. Good leadership makes the most difference. Working conditions come way later.
I once worked in a freezing cold building with paper thin walls while using a card table as a desk. We were much more successful than some of the multi-billion dollar projects I have worked on that had what I call "invisible managers" running the show. I won't go into detail on why I call them that (it does not mean they are not involved in the project), but proper management makes all the difference in the world.
Not just Microsoft. Sun tried it, IBM tried it.
It ain't gonna happen any time soon.
Anyone who has been around would realize that it's already been tried and done a gazzilion times in the past. Hell, thin-clients are one of the oldest desktop system designs ever made (mini/mainframe 3270, anyone?!).
Like so many things in this world the true solution will likely be a compromise. That is, we will still have high-powered desktops but run some stuff over the net (like you do now with web-based e-mail and such). Balance, moderation, compromise: keys to everything in life.
Beats C++ in performance. Those have nothing to do with speed.
Show me one example where O'Caml beats C++.
I mean this seriously. I'm both an experienced O'Caml (and SML, Erlang) programmer and C/C++ programmer. I have never, ever, had anyone present a problem that can't be done faster in C or C++. You might have to solve the problem differently, but C/C++ wins every time as far as performance goes.
Now implementation speed and/or maintenance is something different. O'Caml has a horrible syntax though. Regular SML is much better. They should've just stuck with that.
Yeah, me too. They are the quietest 3.5" drives out there. There are quieter 2.5" drives, but they lack space and performance.
What I hate about all drives, even the Seagate's, is they every few minutes they go into some self check mode or something. I have no idea what the drive is doing, but it gets louder. This is not disk access, it's like when the drive has been mostly idle for several minutes it starts doing something (internal checks or something?). It's annoyingly loud though.
But I guess the main point is that asking "Is Xen more secure than VServer than UML" is like asking "Which taste better - apples or oranges?" (i.e. what's your definition of taste?).
No way. That's a cop-out.
I think the question at hand is whether or not a compromise in one of the guest VM's will compromise the entire machine.
And yes, there are better designs than others for preventing this. If someone roots one of the guest machines, I don't want it to compromise anything other than that one VM.
How does the security in VServer fair against Xen?
I did a little research on this a long time ago and I looked at both VServer and UML, but neither seemed like they would be secure against a root level breach in one of the VM's (therefore compromising all the other VM's). I just did a quick look though, so maybe I was wrong.
I have not looked at Xen. I did not know it existed until today.
I have been using VMware and although it runs Windows great, running Linux in VMware doesn't seem to run as fast.
Not often, but sometimes. I try to keep the same style if possible. Engineers seem especially bad about writing cryptic, compressed, broken code.
Artistic Style (astyle) is what I use to reformat code.
I have used this style extensively in the past and I agree.
I don't tend to use that format though because it's so rare that people crap their pants when they see it and start complaining. It takes a little getting used to but once you get used to it, it works a lot better.
These days I use whatever style the project is written in but I much prefer your style or ANSI style. I usually just use ANSI style so that other programmers will at least accept it.
I have to say that I agree with you to a certain degree.
I'll go one more step though. It's about white space. You can almost always recognize a good programmer by how clean the code looks because of proper use of white space. If the code is all crammed together and cluttered looking then you know that programmer sucks. White space does not make your code slower guys!
Note that I said this is a way to recognize a good programmers. Often experience plays a role but I see a ton of fairly experienced programmers that write ass crappy code.
I see a lot of people saying comments are also a sign but I have to disagree. Well written code is easy to read and figure out. I would much rather have nicely written code than comments. (Note that it is my job to fix other people's code so I have a lot of experience with this)
It's not exactly the same. It's version 5.1 build 2600. A build number is a lot different than an actual version number.
Personally I think many projects (especially open-source) are getting out of hand with the version numbers. Just look at some of the version information on some Debian packages.
I mean, you have stuff like version "testing-4.3.0.dfsg.1-12.0.1". Does no one else see that as insane? I know each part has a purpose, but it seems more like improper project management. Is this possibly caused by a lack of proper scheduling? Things take too long and people start branching off into separate sub-versions.
It's the same thing with the kernel. I see no reason for official kernels to have so many frickin sub-versions. KISS, please. I think you reach a certain point and then the versions have lost all meaning. End-users can't keep track of all this stuff. Please implement better project management practices and just do actual releases with a simple versioning scheme.
Oh my, what a load of crap. While it's true that Intel probably puts out more heat, those features like TM2 and SpeedStep are good things.
OK, read this well... Regarding TM2. The Pentium has had hardware thermal protection built right into the the CPU since the at least the P3 days. Go take a look at that old Tom's Hardware article where they pull the heatsink off various CPU's while they are running Quake3. All the AMD's smoke themselves and often the motherboard too, while the Intel chips just slow the game down. This is implemented in the CPU, and it's good thing. The only AMD chips to have this feature are the Opterons.
AMD also has mechanisms like Enhanced SpeedStep. They call it Cool 'N Quiet or something like that. With the AMD's this in implemented on the motherboard. I'm not sure about these new Intel chips. This is also a good thing because it allows you to lower your fan speeds and things like that when the CPU is not running full blast. This makes for a more quiet machine which is also a good thing.
Ha, no way.
Is Disney's strategy different because they own the entertainment industry?